Marriott, Fix Your Certificate Reservation System

Prior to program integration, Marriott changed the way in which you redeemed credit card certificates (at least for the old Marriott Rewards Premier Visa). Instead of having a certificate, per say, I was told that 25,000 points would be used for the stay, which would then be refunded to my account. So when I was going over my upcoming reservations, I noticed my credit card certificate stay said this:

I also went through my account activity back to when I made the reservation and didn't see any corresponding activity. So, I went ahead and ordered the certificate.

I then got the above confirmation screen, and didn't think anything of it. As far as I knew, a certificate was not yet attached to this reservation.

But, then, the 25,000 points were deducted from my account and never re-credited. So, of course, I got on the phone and tried to figure out what went wrong.

Apparently, a certificate was already attached to my account. My actions cause the system to double pay my reservation, hence the points deduction. Thankfully, the associate figured out what the heck was going on pretty quickly, got on the phone with a supervisor, and had my points immediately credited back to my account.

Things like shouldn't happen, though. The information displayed shouldn't be so ambiguous as to let incidents like this happen. And, of course, this was never an issue prior to the integration. So, hopefully, this is something Marriott will change in the future. If not, if you're forgetful like me, make sure you note down whether or not certificates have been ordered for your award stays. If not, you may end up double paying.

And, speaking of system quirks, I'm not showing SNA availability for properties that previously didn't show any.

Of course, the images all still don't work, and I still can't make Starwood SNA requests , because when I get kicked over to SPG.com, I'm told my account doesn't exist. And while this shouldn't be a problem, the SNAs that show up when accessing my account on my desktop computer still show up as unavailable through the app! Come on, Marriott... It's been 5 weeks already!

I was able to use my Chase cat. 1-5 free night cert. for my NYC trip at the Residence Inn downtown on 9/8/18. But I couldn't combine the points redemption for the night of 9/9. The system made me do a separate reservation on the 2 nights. It worked out fine but then I have to chase the 9/8 elite night to be posted to my account after I returned home. It's always good to double check on every reservation from now on. Thanks for the reminder.

Yeah, that's pretty typical. Same with combining the certificate with cash. They have to make a note on the back end to tie your reservations together, which normally works out ok. If the property is really bad, then at worse you'd have to check out and re-check back in (likely having to vacate the room too), but luckily I've never had to do this... yet. *knock on wood*

kharada46 So sorry to hear that happened to you, even "simple" transactions from the past seem to present challenges now. It is already frustrating enough, but then the thought of getting on the phone with Plat Cust Svc and waiting for up to an hour (stories from other insiders) to get something resolved (that should not have happened in the first place) is something I wouldn't wish on even an enemy of mine.

It seems so odd that the system will allow for you to book an SPG reservations, but not SNA requests? The system allows you to book SPG reservations from your MR log in, which moves you over to the SPG side when you book? Some folks mentioned a "new" SPG number once they combined their accounts. Do you have that as well or did you have your MR combine into your SPG account? I don't have SPG experience so I am trying to learn from all the experts. I sure hope you are able to use your SNA on the SPG properties, otherwise it is very limiting. Ironic since that is where SNA's started Wondering if that is happening with others as well. We had such high hopes for the SNA benefit, hope it will eventually be the wonderful benefit we were hoping it was going to be.

Thank you for your concern, siliconvalleyplat. It is ridiculous, isn't it, that simple things that used to work don't now, or are now very complicated because of the integration.

So, marriott.com doesn't let me book, modify, or request SNAs for Starwood properties. It says my loyalty member number is invalid. However, if I use the Marriott, SPG, or Ritz app is fine. But the app doesn't show the same SNA availability as marriott.com does. The number I use now, by the way, is my original Marriott Rewards number. I had an old SPG number and then the new one, but that new number is now invalid because I combined my accounts. Someone else had mentioned that numbers that start with 0 are experiencing this weird issue with Starwood, so that could be it for me. But guess we'll see... I hope they solve the issue soon.

The only certificate that I have available to book a reservation is the 75-night free night cert, that every potential reservation wants me to use it (if it is eligible), however using a multi-day certificate is impossible. I was told old certs had to be converted to new certs, which I had that done, and the new ones can't be attached to reservations either and are not listed as eligible for any reservation I try to make, at any category. Even combined accounts and tried to make a cert reservation online - still doesn't work!

That's awful, o0o0o0o0o0o...points! How is a benefit a benefit if it's not usable? We're already 1.5 months into this integration... having as many issues I've I've been hearing about and experiencing is completely unacceptable.

Could be a 'new' step I'm missing for doing this in the 'new' program, but there aren't any 'new' instructions for using the certs, so the only assuming I can make is that it's broken! I haven't called to attempt using one yet though, so once I'm actually ready to use it, if it still isn't working by then, I'll call...